The Ties that Bind: Blood, Steel and Death
by Mind-Game-King
Summary: A series of short stories, based on the events of battle. Told from the point of view of the soldiers, not the commanders. Rated Teen.
1. Blood

The Ties that Bind: Blood, Steel, and Death.

Part 1: Trial by Air.

An Advance Wars Fanfic

By Mind-Game-King.

"You've got a mission duration of four days. This mission is to provide emergency air cover for the 1st tank battalion, should the need arise. The Fog of War is keeping us from being sure what the enemy has, so precautions are needed for their safety. Once the tanks have broken through the Anti-Air wave, you are to retreat immediately."

That was the order given to my squadron. We were always support, deployed to battle for no other reason than the safety of our comrades, instead of the destruction of our enemies. Or at least, that's what I keep telling myself.

"Hey! Kid!" My squad's leader barked at me in his harsh tone, "We're supposed to be in the air! Get your head outta the clouds, we need to fly!" If it wasn't one thing with my captain, it was another. I'd learned to shut up and listen to him, if for no other reason than to avoid a 'lesson' he taught using his whip. He was only somewhat happy when we got to fly, and if we didn't have a mission, we had his torture to look forward to. And people wonder why I can't wait to get out of this war.

The routine, as always, was a pain. Suit yourself up, check your own fighter, strap yourself in, adjust your plane's settings even if you didn't always remember why, and be on the tarmac 'as soon as possible'. It's no wonder we take a full day to get one squad ready.

The takeoff, however, was ironically the part I always looked forward to the most. From the moments of fear you missed something checking your plane, to the ever-constant worry of an enemy infantry unit taking over the whole airport, every care in the world just fades away when you lift off the ground. You have total control of your motions, flying at speeds unmatched by anything on the battlefield. You soar through the air. Is there anything more worthwhile than feeling released from your bonds to gravity?

Apparently so, as the obnoxious voice of our captain reminded me and the squad. Our directions were given to us, for our squadron to rendezvous with the Tank Battalion in the east. As far as the Intel had shown, our enemy was holed up with waves of Anti-Airs, crushing advance parties of infantry and bombers alike. HQ had decided the best course of action was to meet their army with one of our own, and my squadron was the backup for this final push, to take any bombers or copters the enemy had in store.

My radio crackled to life by the time we reached the rendezvous point the next day, a message from the officer in command of the battalion incoming.

"...We have a visual on the Enemies' front. Make your way into a holding pattern behind our own front line, and wait for further instructions."

The captain confirmed this request, and directed us into position. I could see below the lines of tanks below, all in order, mass produced in our factories and driven by our brothers in arms. So we quickly assumed the place ordered by the officer. By the time we arrived, all hell was breaking loose. A unit of Bazooka-carrying infantrymen had made a kamikaze effort to break into our line of Tanks. When the tanks broke formation to assault it, the Anti-Air's first line struck back. The battle was unfolding below us, but we couldn't do anything about it. All we could do was watch in shock as the front line of the Anit Airs pulled back to reveal a full compliment of long-range weaponry, unloading their payload on our front lines and driving the tanks back. My squad, however, didn't receive any orders to retreat from our captain.

What we got instead was a simple, meaningful message.

"As much as I hated you boys sometimes, it's been an honor flying with you."

We understood his meaning when we saw the incoming missiles.


	2. Steel

The Ties that Bind: Blood, Steel, and Death.

Part 2: Trial by Water

An Advance Wars Fanfic

By Mind-Game-King.

I hate being at sea. I really do.

Look at it any way you want, all it takes is one piece of faulty intel to be blasted, one day's worth of fuel not being supplied in time to sink, one order from command to go on what we know is a suicide run to have just that happen. It's not fun working a sub.

Thankfully enough, we weren't technically at sea. Landed in port, submerged and serving as a defense to any ships that would want to break in, now that's an easy job. I hadn't had to fire a torpedo once yet.

Actually, I've never fired one. The last time me and the rest of the crew were called to battle, our troops apparently won before we even reached the front. Not too shabby, I got paid, and never really saw action. I guess you could say our crew was feeling proud of that, and on ease to. Our role had just about no risk: it was unlikely the enemy would try to take this port anyway, most of the fighting had been taking place on the ground. Plus, being in port meant repairs could be made at any time. I wasn't worried.

A few weeks into the assignment, we got a message from command. Apparently, a Lander backed by a Submarine was headed for the base, and the lander was carrying both a Mid-Tank and an infantry unit. The enemies' plan was obvious: the sub would make sure the lander could reach the port, which would give the enemy a foothold if they managed to make it. So it looked like me and the crew would get into the action this time.

The reports came in steadily: passing fighters from our side radioed the location of the sub and lander as they passed to the battle, and they were headed directly for us. Soon enough, the captain made a ship-wide call to all of us; "Alright, boys 'n girls. It seems we get our first taste of battle within the week. And given our situation, we're going to win." The crew around me was grinning ear to ear, some laughing at our fortune, even high-fiving each other in advance. "However, that also means headquaters isn't planning on diverting funds to supply us with reinforcements." The captain's static-ridden voice added. The laughter died down. "Don't get the wrong idea. This isn't going to be easy, and if we let up they can still blow us to kingdom come. So let's give 'em hell long before they can give it to us." The crew fell silent. But at least they fell silent with a smile. I just groaned: so much for no combat.

Strategically, we were set. Our port was into land through a channel, and as such no more than two ships could get in at any time. So even if the enemy sent more ships, we'd hold out. The other crewmen were running through the drills like clockwork, the tension and anticipation building. I, on the other hand, just couldn't care less. Our victory was assured, and my job was so simple I was surprised they didn't get some computer to do it long ago. I just was annoyed by the whole thing. Here I was, in the one scenario where being on a ship wasn't a death sentence, and this enemy sub was coming along to wreck it. Not something I had to enjoy. Not like the rest of the crew cared, they just wanted to go into battle... Bunch of loons...

Soon enough, we could see for ourselves the enemy ships. The lander behind, and a surfaced Sub up front, we were sitting pretty to intercept. When the two came in, we got our order to brace for impact. When the ship -whichever one it was, the lander or the sub- crashed into us, we were told to open fire immediately. So when we saw the submarine head into the channel first, I loaded my first real torpedo at last. They're heavier than they look.

The battle began with a roar, soon as the sub was forced to stop before ramming us we unloaded our first salvo. It hit with a boom, and they scrambled to return fire. We all had a good hearty laugh as the ship took a few limp blows from the other sub, shots we knew we could fix since we had the supplies on hand. Still, we knew we couldn't lie down, so we waited on the enemy to fire again while we reloaded. We didn't wait long.

The battle had both sides trading blows. I was working harder than I ever had back when we were just guarding the harbor. To be clear, that means putting in any effort at all. And to make matters worse, we had orders to sink the Lander as well after we were done here. We were all a bit surprised it hadn't tried to run when we had the enemy sub on the ropes, but we didn't mind. Where our sub was badly damaged and leaking, their's was probably so shot up it coulda been mistaken for an underwater window. So thankfully, we all knew the fight was gonna be over soon. It had taken a few days, but they couldn't take another salvo. In fact, they'd just fired off one last shot and barely survived our counterstrike, when we knew we had it in the bag.

Then the other enemy sub rose up outta the water, and joined forces with the first sub.

Headquaters was scrambling. We had taken damage, and nobody had any clue what to do since we were boxed in the channel and couldn't escape. So we got our last order:

"Hold the channel as long as possible, boys. We take the headquaters, they'll be forced to surrender. We can't spare the troops now."

We were all scared outta our minds. We were still trying to fix our ship fast as we could, but now the other guy was all fixed up, and looking for the knockout punch. Finally, our captain called it. The loudspeakers boomed overhead as we prepared to fire back what we expected was our last counterattack.  
"Everyone... abandon ship. Get to the escape pods, our ship is making it's ascent. Upon reaching the surface, all crew is to abandon ship. That's an order."

What was once a nervous tension was now full blown panic in the ship. We were all darting around, desperate to make it into one of the escape pods to freedom, even if we were out of the fight. My mind was racing; not one week ago I was sitting pretty, and now I was praying silently to live, let alone get my next paycheck. My head went blank, save for what had to be some survival instinct I'd had bottled up. Having dropped the salvo I was loading, I had just enough time to push aside another crewmate and squeeze into a pod. Without a second thought, we were out. I breathed a sigh of relief, even as I watched my own ship explode behind me and my comrades drowned just outside the steel shell protecting my life. Then my ears picked up something, that everyone could hear. It was the sound of an object, streaking through the water, headed for it's target: us.


End file.
